About GameSetWatch

GameSetWatch.com is the alt.video game weblog and sister site of Gamasutra.com. It is dedicated to collecting curious links and media for offbeat and oft-ignored games from consoles old and new, as well as from the digital download, iOS, and indie spaces.

[GameSetLinks is GameSetWatch's daily link round-up post, culling from hundreds of weblogs and outlets to compile the most interesting longform writing, links, and criticism on the art and culture of video games.]

Well, we're really liking this expanded post stylee here at GameSetWatch, and trying to post some of the spicier, more visual things as standalone blogs, while keeping the denser things in these here linklogs - we'll see how that works out!

In any case, this set of links includes further publicity for art-game-ish chap Mark Essen, as well as Greg Costikyan's already much discussed Quality Of Life rant targeting the IGDA, and a kinda adorably hilarious ACG article on random adventure game puzzles, plus much more.

Play This Thing! | Mothers, Don't Let Your Children Grow Up to Be Game Developers
Strong words here from Greg Costikyan, but interesting: 'The simple fact (as demonstrated in its research, available at the link above) is that most game developers burn out within 5 years of entering the industry, because of the absurd hours (for, incidentally, lower pay than programmers, artists, producers, and Q/A people can command in other software and media ventures).'

Elder Game: MMO game development » Why We Play MMOs
'To suggest that learning alone is the core of fun is a really … well, arrogant … thing to do. It reeks of the forced-grouping hypothesis that held sway over the industry for half a decade — made popular by designers who got into the industry after playing lots of EverQuest.'